With the United Arab Emirates and Singapore intense on becoming the next crypto hubs among regulatory uncertainty over crypto-currencies across the world, several crypto exchanges are moving their bases out of the country. The fear is that tax applications on all digital assets will force investors to crypto websites that don’t even have the basic idea of the customer requirements.
In December 2021, the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange by volume, Binance entered into an agreement with Dubai World Trade Centre Authority (DWTCA), which is functioning to found an international virtual asset ecosystem. DWTCA is a promising regulated zone for crypto service providers in Dubai.
The government also desires to create an encouraging environment for crypto mining and Bloomberg stated that UAE is planning to dispute a federal crypto license for virtual asset development service by the end of the first quarter of 2022.
The UAE is the third-biggest crypto marketplace in the Middle East after Turkey and Lebanon and one of the world’s fastest-growing markets, according to an October 2021 Chainalysis report.
Meanwhile, Bloomberg described that the Monetary Authority of Singapore, which controls banks and financial firms, is putting in place “strong regulation,” so businesses that meet its requirements and address the multitude of risks. Singapore has already attracted the likes of Binance Holdings, which has had a sequence of run-ins with managers around the world, to Gemini, a US operator aiming at institutional investors, to set up a base.
Singapore and Dubai are not the only two with crypto determinations. Countries like Estonia, Miami, El Salvador, Malta, and Zug in Switzerland, are also achieving their moment to appeal to the crypto and blockchain industry.
During the economical announcement, Finance Minister not only retained earnings from crypto-currencies and non-fungible tokens (NFTs) in India’s highest tax band of 30 percent, she also stated losses from their sale could not be offset against other income, providing another obstacle to trading and investment in digital assets.
Post the budget announcement, the crypto tax was extensively grasped as a form of legal recognition of cryptocurrencies in India but the concept was exposed by the head of the country’s Central Board of Direct Taxes. “The crypto trade or the digital assets transactions do not become legal or regular just because you have paid taxes on that,” said CBDT chief J.B. Mohapatra.
He added that the new crypto tax might help the income tax department portion the depth of the digital currency market in the country and stressed that imposing a tax on the hopeful crypto market doesn’t necessarily legalize its trade in the country.
Cryptocurrency businesses raised a record $34 billion in 2021, higher than the amount from all preceding years combined, with over half of it coming from the US. Now, several global crypto exchanges are awaiting more transparency on regulations before investing in the country.
Despite regulatory doubt, India already has two crypto unicorns in CoinDCX and CoinSwitchKuber. However, the recent complex tax policies can prove to be a damper for fundraising by the industry as TDS compliance and a high tax rate will make it difficult for multinational entities and exchanges to set up business in the country.